Tag Archives: collage

New York artist Michael Mapes creates elaborate specimen boxes by dissecting photographs and then compartmentalizing individual fragments within plastic bags, glass vials, magnifiers, in gelatin capsules and on insect pins. The boxes exist in an uncanny area between photography and sculpture, functioning both as portraits and as fascinating scientific canvases that make you question the the logic behind the organization of each piece. See more of his work over at Parlor Gallery, and if you liked this also check out the work of David Adey. (via lost at e minor)

I just stumbled onto these beautiful collages by Princeton-based artist Erika Iris who deftly reconfigures sheet music to create portraits and other illustrations. The Beethoven and MLK pieces are especially wonderful, but don’t miss some of her other works with paper or her portraits made from cassette tape and old film.

Artist Chad Person, creator of the post-apocalyptic shelter experiment the Resource Exhaustion Crisis Evacuation Safety Shelter that managed to ruffle the feathers of the ATF when he built an improvised shotgun sculpture, has shifted focus to ongoing series of collages made from United States currency. Some of the earliest pieces are part of his TaxCut series, a tongue-in-cheek title stemming from his ability to write off the destroyed currency as part of his taxes. His most recent piece, the kraken shown above, will be on display as part of a group exhibition at Joshua Liner Gallery starting April 19.

Artist Meg Hitchock (previously) has completed a number of new, elaborate collage works with letters cut from assorted books including the Koran and Salmon Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses. The patience required to assemble these absolutely astounds me. If you’re unfamiliar with her work here’s a quote from her artist statement:

In my text drawings I deconstruct the word of God by cutting letters from sacred writings and rearranging them to form a passage from another holy book. I may cut letters from the Bible and reassemble them as a passage from the Koran, or use letters cut from the Torah to recreate an ancient Tantric text. The individual letters are glued to the paper in a continuous line of type, without spaces or punctuation, in order to discourage a literal reading of the text. By bringing together the sacred writings of diverse traditions, I create a visual tapestry of inspired writings, all pointing beyond specifics to the universal need for connection with something greater than oneself.

Raleigh-based artist and landscape architect Scott Hazard uses carefully layered photographs to create delicately torn concentric shapes symbolizing plumes of smoke, clouds, and mysterious portals in walls. Hazard has also used adaptations of the same technique to create a number of fantastic typographic works he calls Text Constructs.

Using carefully cut fragments of printed skin from the photographs of celebrities in popular magazines, artist David Adey creates elaborate, pinned collages reminiscent of the most complex entomological displays. In some instances he reconstructs the original photos using component pieces cut into myriad geometric shapes and symbols, each placed perfectly on the canvas with a single pin. Other times he creates giant whirling textures as with his piece Swarm, a process that can take up to 200-300 hours. The patience required for all of this simply boggles the mind. Adley currently has a solo show at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. (via lustik)

This blog is no stranger to stereographicprojections, but I’ve never seen anything quite like this. These wonderful aerial collages using photographs shot from atop electric towers, cranes, high rise buildings and bridges are by Netherlands-based photographer Wouter van Buuren. Captured in locations across the Netherlands, China, and New York, the projections condense panoramic horizons into compact worlds that at times look like giant glass marbles. Click the images above to see the landscapes much larger, and see more work in his portfolio. Wouter just opened a solo show at Witzenhausen Gallery in Amsterdam through February 4.